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LustForLeith
27-05-2018, 10:59 AM
With Scotland playing Peru in a friendly there’s been loads in the press about the doomed 78 World Cup campaign in Argentina when we played Peru.

I was only two at the time so I can’t remember it but I was wondering good those who can what was it like? My dad tells me Scotland weee the only team who had a winning parade before they actually went to the tournament! Not sure if that was the plans.

Failed drugs test, players going daft about bonuses, fans travelling to Argentina and not coming back, Ally McLeod stroking the head of a stray dog and claiming it was his only friend and Gemmill scoring one of the best goals ever as we beat the team who’ll go on to finish runners up...

It could only happen to Scotland!

cabbageandribs1875
27-05-2018, 11:04 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyJTBrbPIHQ



crackin goal from wee archie :)

stantonhibby
27-05-2018, 11:10 AM
With Scotland playing Peru in a friendly there’s been loads in the press about the doomed 78 World Cup campaign in Argentina when we played Peru.

I was only two at the time so I can’t remember it but I was wondering good those who can what was it like? My dad tells me Scotland weee the only team who had a winning parade before they actually went to the tournament! Not sure if that was the plans.

Failed drugs test, players going daft about bonuses, fans travelling to Argentina and not coming back, Ally McLeod stroking the head of a stray dog and claiming it was his only friend and Gemmill scoring one of the best goals ever as we beat the team who’ll go on to finish runners up...

It could only happen to Scotland!

I was 12 so remember it well sadly. There was an open top bus parade at Hampden as a send-off ! The Peru game , pretty sure we scored first, but all downhill after that....with some old Peru player (Cubillas) running the show. The Iran game was even worse. Sad thing is we had some really good players as well.

Pagan Hibernia
27-05-2018, 11:11 AM
Wasn’t alive at the time so don’t want to derail your thread too much but it’s a period of South American history that fascinates me. I’ve read a lot about the military dictatorship that terrorized Argentina at the time, and visited the country since then. Some truly awful things were happening while that World Cup was going on.

id also love to hear from anyone that actually went there in ‘78

Skol
27-05-2018, 11:30 AM
I was coming up for 11 and remember 78 fondly as the first world cup I had properly watched.

It started with the Sunday Mail World Cup Club. I am sure the tankard with the signatures of the squad will still be in my Mums house. The world cup wallchart. Badges, and collecting the Panini stickers with all these foreign greats. Kempes, Houseman, Zico etc.

The open bus departure. The fact that we actually thought we had a real chance. Or was that just the 10yo getting into the hype.

Then the dissapointment of the first game and the hope at one stage in the last game.

There was a comedy made of the whole thing once, based around a group of pals who gathered in one of the houses to watch the games. The guy had a new doorbell installed that played ';Who's on the march with Ally's army'

Brilliant

ancient hibee
27-05-2018, 11:30 AM
At the time most of us non-fantasists thought that the midfield would be found out unless Souness was brought in but you had to hand it to Ally for drumming up enthusiasm.

The Pointer
27-05-2018, 11:31 AM
I'd been to the finals in '74 so looked at various ways to get to Argentina with friends as it was dead expensive to fly. Even discussed chartering a plane with a pilot I met at a party.

Some blokes famously even looked at going by submarine while some guys really didn't come back and they never reached Argentina. There was a TV travelogue type programme a few years ago where the presenter rocked up at a wee village on the Amazon to find a Scot who had got so far, run out of money and just stayed.

Just to show how 'old' I am, I've seen Scotland play at four World Cup Finals - West Germany, Mexico, Italy and France. All amazing experiences with stories to suit, particularly Mexico.

stu in nottingham
27-05-2018, 11:50 AM
Scotland certainly underestimated Peru and the general task in front of them. I did feel also at the time that the team, which had been a very good one indeed, was going slightly past it's best in certain players where new players in hindsight might have been introduced such as Souness etc.

tamig
27-05-2018, 11:57 AM
That Scotland team in the run up to 78 was as good as any I’ve seen. I genuinely thought we’d go far in the competition. As Rioch says though, Ally was too loyal to certain players and Souness should have been in the team. I think we had some bad luck before the tournament losing both Danny McGrain and Gordon McQueen to injury. It also sounds like Peru and Iran were written off as no hopers and weren’t even watched. The game against the Dutch proved what the team was capable of but by that point it had all gone tits up and the damage was done.

Bishop Hibee
27-05-2018, 12:04 PM
As an 11 year old I reckoned we’d probably not win it but had a good chance of making the last four. Lack of analysis of Iran and Peru pre-tournament was McLeod’s downfall. The pivotal moment was the penalty miss by Don Masson at 1-1 v Peru. Knocked the stuffing out of us and they ran riot. The 1-1 draw v Iran was the worst I’ve ever seen Scotland play given the good players we had.

superfurryhibby
27-05-2018, 12:05 PM
14 at the time and I really believed we would do well. On the tour of South America the previous year we gubbed Chile, outplayed Argentina in a 1-1 draw and played Brazil ( score evades me). We had a fantastic squad, had eliminated a very strong Czecheslovakia side in qualifying.

Sadly, no one seemed to understand that Peru were a decent side with some outstanding players. We totally underestimated them and paid the price.

AltheHibby
27-05-2018, 12:23 PM
My main memory of '78 is a school trip to the Scotsman offices where we saw a photo coming through from Argentina on a marvellous new machine called a "fax machine".

It only took half an hour, and was probably the high point of that World Cup for me.

SonOfDavidFrancey
27-05-2018, 01:56 PM
Wasn’t alive at the time so don’t want to derail your thread too much but it’s a period of South American history that fascinates me. I’ve read a lot about the military dictatorship that terrorized Argentina at the time, and visited the country since then. Some truly awful things were happening while that World Cup was going on.

id also love to hear from anyone that actually went there in ‘78
There was widespread condemnation when Scotland went and played Chile in the summer of 77 maybe - and played in the same stadium where Allende kept political prisoners in Santiago

SonOfDavidFrancey
27-05-2018, 02:00 PM
Seems obvious in retrospect but Rioch/ Masson midfield was a year past its best - they had been brilliant in 76 and 77. MacLeod dithered and didn’t play Souness until the last game. Rioch gives this view too in the interview with Aidan Smith recently posted.

Actually with only 16 teams in the tournament. If Scotland has qualified they would certainly have had a chance of going far - the team tat beat Holland at least.

SonOfDavidFrancey
27-05-2018, 02:01 PM
As someone said we missed a penno to go 2-0 up on Peru. We ran out of steam and Cubillas had a stormer.

Pagan Hibernia
27-05-2018, 02:03 PM
There was widespread condemnation when Scotland went and played Chile in the summer of 77 maybe - and played in the same stadium where Allende kept political prisoners in Santiago

thanks, I didn’t know Scotland played there.

(ps - you mean where Pinochet kept political prisoners?)

OxoHibby
27-05-2018, 02:15 PM
At the time most of us non-fantasists thought that the midfield would be found out unless Souness was brought in but you had to hand it to Ally for drumming up enthusiasm.

Saw a documentary about the debacle a while ago. Was 7 so don't remember too much about the lows but remember watching the Holland game. What was interesting in the documentary was that Scotland were considered a good outside bet in other countries and had potentially the best Midfield in the world at the time. Obviously not the one mcleod suchk with tho

davym7062
27-05-2018, 02:33 PM
It was coz we wore blue shorts in the the Peru and Iran games. We were brilliant back in the white shorts v Holland! Ridiculous decision 😂

Kojock
27-05-2018, 02:42 PM
Remember thousands of pigeons in Scotland were slaughtered as they kept saying Peru, Peru.

Tinribs
27-05-2018, 02:43 PM
Roughie summed it all up quite well on his show the other night, talking about the chaos of the whole affair. The hotel the team stayed at was brutal, an empty dry swimming pool and no windows in their shared rooms. He was asked 'no windows?' he said nope, just two beds and a cupboard lol

davym7062
27-05-2018, 02:47 PM
It was coz we wore blue shorts in the the Peru and Iran games. We were brilliant back in the white shorts v Holland! Ridiculous decision 😂

StirlingHibee
27-05-2018, 03:06 PM
Was 12 at the time. I got caught up in the hype like everybody else and actually thought we were in with a chance (what on earth were we thinking)! I was devastated when Peru beat us 3-1. I remember my dad consoling me telling me not to worry as we would thump Iran. As we all know that game ended 1-1 then we go on to beat probably the best footballing team on the planet at that time (Holland). Typical Scotland. As a footnote, as a young boy I was a talented Subbuteo player. At the Scottish Subbuteo championships in May 1978 in Glasgow Ally MacLeod was the guest of honour. As you can imagine with 4 weeks to go to the World Cup everywhere Ally went so did hundreds of press. All 8 final participants had lunch with him before the games started and he stayed all afternoon (he even spoke to my mum). I got put out in a penalty shoot out in the Semi-Final where he gave me a consolation pat on the pack. We were all over the papers (and TV) the following day. Ally was such a down to earth, nice guy who made 8 very nervous youngsters completely at ease. As a nation he made us dare to dream and for me that's no bad thing in life.

ancient hibee
27-05-2018, 03:51 PM
It was said after the Holland game that even if we had won by enough to qualify that we would have been penalised 3points for Johnston’s drug offence and so wouldn’t have qualified.

Spike Mandela
27-05-2018, 04:27 PM
Writing was on the wall.....

Peru, Iran, Scotland, Holland........PISH

Colr
27-05-2018, 04:41 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyJTBrbPIHQ



crackin goal from wee archie :)

Credit also to Dalglish for the 1-2

SonOfDavidFrancey
27-05-2018, 05:33 PM
thanks, I didn’t know Scotland played there.

(ps - you mean where Pinochet kept political prisoners?)

Whoops yes of course - I meant Allende supporters who had been rounded up by pinochet

offshorehibby
27-05-2018, 06:01 PM
6th June

Scotland '78: A Love Story

http://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/e/gmpjg6/scotland-78-a-love-story/

Mibbes Aye
27-05-2018, 06:16 PM
With Scotland playing Peru in a friendly there’s been loads in the press about the doomed 78 World Cup campaign in Argentina when we played Peru.

I was only two at the time so I can’t remember it but I was wondering good those who can what was it like? My dad tells me Scotland weee the only team who had a winning parade before they actually went to the tournament! Not sure if that was the plans.

Failed drugs test, players going daft about bonuses, fans travelling to Argentina and not coming back, Ally McLeod stroking the head of a stray dog and claiming it was his only friend and Gemmill scoring one of the best goals ever as we beat the team who’ll go on to finish runners up...

It could only happen to Scotland!

Graham McColl's book "'78:How a Nation Lost the World Cup" is a very good, well-researched and gently witty read describing the lead-in to Argentina and what happened when we got there.

As stated above, we had a pretty awesome squad - players from a range of clubs with English League titles and European Cups in their medal haul, and tons of experience. As Tamig posted, perhaps the biggest mistake was delaying the introduction of Souness.

A lot of posters on here will only have seen him as a TV pundit or as a manager not quite cutting it. Older ones will remember him from old Rankgers. But before then he had been literally one of the best midfielders in Europe, three European Cup winner's medals with Liverpool and two decent seasons in Serie A with more silverware. Hindsight suggests he should have featured earlier, but hindsight is always 20/20 vision I guess.

Cardinal Hibernian
28-05-2018, 06:29 AM
My goodness, 40 years ago.

Something like 35 000+ turned up for the Hampden send off. At times these days the international team struggles to get that size of a crowd to come along and watch a game of football.

Mason, who was captain, missed the pen.

Only a 16 team tournament in those days. Scotland had a pretty decent South American tour in summer 1977 and that helped fuel the hype. Added to the fact that in 1974 Scotland became the first team in World Cup Final history to be knocked out without losing a game (drew with Brazil if not for Billy Bremner trundling a close shot/ricochet cms wide; drew with Yugoslavia but only beat Zaire 3 v 0 and lost out on goal difference).

Trevor McDonald, the veteran ITV news anchor, was the beat reporter sending back bulletins of Ally McLeod and the dissaray following that opening game.

Lots of rumours that Peru were nobbled by the Argentians in the semi final round (no knockout round - the next round had two groups of four with the winner of each making the final and the runner ups forming the 3rd - 4th place play off game) who had to win handsomely to pip Brazil and gubbed Peru 6 - 1 accordingly.



Sent from my SM-T820 using Tapatalk

SonOfDavidFrancey
28-05-2018, 07:11 AM
Whoops yes of course - I meant Allende supporters who had been rounded up by pinochet

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.scotsman.com/sport/football/teams/scotland/the-scotland-v-chile-friendly-labelled-the-match-of-shame-1-4655623/amp

JimBHibees
28-05-2018, 07:53 AM
It was said after the Holland game that even if we had won by enough to qualify that we would have been penalised 3points for Johnston’s drug offence and so wouldn’t have qualified.

Honestly cant remember that being said at the time.

Cardinal Hibernian
28-05-2018, 08:52 AM
Honestly cant remember that being said at the time.Yup, that was correct, points would have been deducted.

Classic Ally McLeod quote a few years later was the pills made the team worse. They chucked them into a field full of cows, when they passed the same field a couple of days later, the cattle were all lively and jumping about - unlike his team!

Sent from my SM-T820 using Tapatalk

tamig
28-05-2018, 09:24 AM
Excellent article with Willie Johnston from the weekend;

In*hindsight, Willie Johnston should have taken the advice of Leopoldo Luque. The year was 1977, the scene a smoke-filled hotel bar in downtown Buenos Aires.
The second of Scotland's three-match match tour of South America had ended in a 1-1 draw with Argentina, and Luque, a World Cup winner 12 months later, appeared to be enjoying the company until the moment he leaned in to whisper a chilling warning.

'John...ston. You are very good player...but be warned...do not return to Argentina for the World Cup.'

Forty years since he was sent home from a World Cup in disgrace for failing a drug test, Willie Johnston ponders those words often. Asking himself why he didn't just sit out Scotland's opening game in the 1978 World Cup with hay fever instead of gulping down two Reactivan antihistamines before kick-off.
'It still affects me now,' says Johnston of his expulsion. 'When Scotland are playing, it gets brought up constantly.
'I'll be remembered forever as the guy who got sent home from Argentina. Not as the only Scot to score two goals (for Rangers) in a European final. That doesn't count.'
He's 71 now, but Scotland's current trip to Peru brings back memories. The South American tour of 1977 saw Johnston set up goals for Kenny Dalglish, Lou Macari and Asa Hartford in a 4-2 win over Chile before moving on to Argentina where General Videla's murderous military junta were keen to prove they were up to the task of hosting European nations before the World Cup finals a year later.

Johnston's running battle with Vicente Pernia ended with the full-back spitting in his face. Both players were sent off, setting in motion the chain of events which saw Luque enter the Scotland dressing room after the game.
'He said to me: "John...ston, my friend (Pernia), my friend wants your jersey." I told him he wasn't getting my jersey. It was later that night he said to me: "Do not come back to Argentina," But I did. Of course I did.'
Scotland's return for the World Cup finals of 1978 remains an open scar on the nation's psyche. The 40th anniversary of an opening 3-1 defeat to a Teofilo Cubillas-inspired Peru arrives three days after the teams play in a friendly in Lima in the early hours of Wednesday. Johnston is unlikely to mark the milestone with a cake.

'When I hear the name Peru, my thought is: "I shouldn't have taken two tablets," he admits in tobacco-scarred tones.
'I took two tablets, Reactivan, but they didn't do me any good in the game. If I'd known what was in them, I'd never have taken them.'

Every Reactivan pill features 10mg per tablet of the banned stimulant fencamfemin. Johnston's room mate Don Masson later admitted to taking the same pills, but only one of the two was hauled in for a drug test.
Had Archie Gemmill been able to 'perform' it wouldn't have been Johnston either. Reclining in the bath after the loss to Peru, Gemmill tapped him on the shoulder to announce he was too dehydrated to give a urine sample.
Called off the substitute's bench, Johnston handed over his sample and thought little more of it until an official function attended by Sports Minister Denis Howell later that night was doorstepped by ITN broadcast journalist Trevor McDonald
'After the Peru game I was having a couple of beers with Tom Forsyth,' recalls Johnston. 'Then the newscaster Trevor McDonald bursts into the room and says: "You've failed the drugs test" and in that moment everything changed.
'I was shattered. I'd no inkling at all. I went in, did the test - me and Kenny Dalglish - and didn't think any more about it. We were with Cubillas and the Peru full-back Diaz I was playing against. I went back to the hotel and was told to pack my bags.'
In his lively autobiography, Sent Off At Gunpoint, Johnston offers an account of an SFA judicial process which was far removed from the era of the Compliance Officer. Forty years later, it wouldn't pass muster in even Kim Jong-un's court.
The former Rangers, West Brom and Hearts winger recounts a terse exchange with secretary Ernie Walker which ran as follows:
Walker: 'You're being sent home. You will never play for Scotland again.'
Johnston: 'I want to appeal.
Walker: 'The SFA will not appeal. We have made our decision, you will be sent home.
Johnston: 'I need to phone my wife Margaret.
Walker: 'There will be no phone calls. You will remain in your room until told otherwise.'
Johnston was smuggled from the team hotel with a blanket over his head like a sex offender the next morning. Bundled into a fast car, he was driven 700 kilometres to Buenos Aires airport and flown home.
'I couldn't get out the hotel for press in the complex. I asked to appeal but no-one was interested in letting me,' he says now.
'I was viewed at that time as the bad boy of Scottish football. I just got bundled into the car and sent home. If we'd beaten them do you think I'd have got sent home?'
Then, as now, Johnston felt like a sacrificial lamb. A convenient scapegoat for the shambolic failings of SFA management and Scotland's awful World Cup under Ally MacLeod.
'Maybe I was sacrificed. I should never have played. I had hay fever and I had a cold. If I hadn't played you'd never have heard anything about it.
'But I wanted to play so I took the antihistamine tablets and I played. I'd still like to see my name cleared, even 40 years on.
'They have asked me to go to certain things - but I tell them I'm on holiday. I've always said I wasn't available.'
In an era when drug cheats in athletics serve a two-year ban then return to win Olympic medals, Johnston's treatment still feels disproportionate.
'I'd like the SFA to come and say: "We're sorry about how we handled it." I'd maybe be able to go to a game. For me, it's past now. I had all the s**t, it was terrible. It was worse for my family and worse when I was in England at West Brom.
'The English press loved it, they slaughtered me. When I played away from home it was terrible. In the grounds it was bad, they were calling me a junkie and everything.'
He returned to Rangers for a second spell, eventually moving to Hearts with his former Ibrox team-mates Alex MacDonald and Sandy Jardine. In Scotland, a slew of infamous red cards did nothing to clean up his image.
'I didn't mind getting it at Celtic Park,' he laughs, 'I'd conduct them there. But getting it from the English was worse.'
Even now, four decades later, one moment of levity from a grim episode shines through. It came from West Brom's manager Ron Atkinson as he hauled Johnston through a media scrum into a waiting car at Heathrow.
'I'll get you through this mess,' he told his mesmeric winger. 'I've already got a new contract for you.'
'New contract?' asked a startled Johnston. 'What new contract?' With impeccable timing, Atkinson replied: 'Boots the Chemist...'

ancient hibee
28-05-2018, 03:30 PM
Honestly cant remember that being said at the time.
Maybe it was still two points then:greengrinIt was a long time ago.

ben johnson
28-05-2018, 03:58 PM
A lot was made of the so called lap of honour prior to departure. I was there at Hampden that day for the farewell. It was held with the main reason that the fans could safely say farewell to the squad.
The police had serious misgivings that Prestwick would be swamped the day they departed and the road down to Ayrshire the old A77 was not the safest road in those days and the thought of thousands travelling down and even lining the road did not sit easily with the police.
The team were adored in that period and if the finals had been in Europe that year the place would have been deserted. I remember it being called a delicious madness. A friendly midweek v Bulgaria and about 70 k turned up.

heidtheba
28-05-2018, 04:22 PM
Wasn’t alive at the time so don’t want to derail your thread too much but it’s a period of South American history that fascinates me. I’ve read a lot about the military dictatorship that terrorized Argentina at the time, and visited the country since then. Some truly awful things were happening while that World Cup was going on.

id also love to hear from anyone that actually went there in ‘78

I remember watching a documentary that was part of a series made on BBC/ITV before the 2006 World Cup. It covered the histories of certain teams and I saw the Argentina one. It covered the '78 WC in some detail and was really interesting. It had an interview with a political prisoner who'd been in jail near to the main stadium when the final was on. They were blindfolded and had just been/were about to be tortured IIRC. They cheered when they heard the loudest cheering from the stadium as it meant their team were a goal up, but they did this whilst being aware of the fact that the ruling order would be given a huge PR boost by the national team winning.

I wonder if anyone can name this documentary as it might be on YouTube and I think you'd enjoy it? I'm afraid I can't remember anything more than what I've said above.

gaz1875
28-05-2018, 07:18 PM
Graham McColl's book "'78:How a Nation Lost the World Cup" is a very good, well-researched and gently witty read describing the lead-in to Argentina and what happened when we got there.

As stated above, we had a pretty awesome squad - players from a range of clubs with English League titles and European Cups in their medal haul, and tons of experience. As Tamig posted, perhaps the biggest mistake was delaying the introduction of Souness.

A lot of posters on here will only have seen him as a TV pundit or as a manager not quite cutting it. Older ones will remember him from old Rankgers. But before then he had been literally one of the best midfielders in Europe, three European Cup winner's medals with Liverpool and two decent seasons in Serie A with more silverware. Hindsight suggests he should have featured earlier, but hindsight is always 20/20 vision I guess.

Really good book and worth a read.

LustForLeith
28-05-2018, 07:58 PM
Really good book and worth a read.

Just ordered it just now

PatHead
28-05-2018, 08:51 PM
My memory is that we had a great team in 1977 but the changes should have been made by 1978.

Was at both the farewell party and the Scotland Wales home international a week or so before in our last home game before we left. Will never forget Willie Donachie's own goal. Had forgotten they missed a penalty though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ahbRPcETys

Hibrandenburg
28-05-2018, 09:32 PM
I was 12 and completely swept up by the hype. It's hard to imagine now but back then we were amongst the top teams in the world and would give anyone a game if the team had shown restraint in the bar the night before a game.

wpj
28-05-2018, 09:33 PM
I remember Johnston playing for hearts and always liked him as a player maybe hindsight is blind but I always felt there was more to him than the scandal of the world cup.

tamig
28-05-2018, 09:39 PM
I remember Johnston playing for hearts and always liked him as a player maybe hindsight is blind but I always felt there was more to him than the scandal of the world cup.

He was a great winger. Prone to losing the head a bit too often though.

Hibs Class
29-05-2018, 07:22 AM
He was a great winger. Prone to losing the head a bit too often though.

He was a really good player, but was sent off over 20 times in his career, and had a nasty streak, most memorably stepping on the throat of an opposing player (possibly against Aberdeen). Football was better off without him.

superfurryhibby
29-05-2018, 07:27 AM
He was a really good player, but was sent off over 20 times in his career, and had a nasty streak, most memorably stepping on the throat of an opposing player (possibly against Aberdeen). Football was better off without him.

18 times in a professional career that took in over 21 years and well over 700 games. Johnstone was no saint but he got the **** kicked out of him week in and week out. In an era when hatchet men specialised in delivering treatment that was off the radar by modern standards, Johnstone was more sinned against than sinner.

JimBHibees
29-05-2018, 08:21 AM
18 times in a professional career that took in over 21 years and well over 700 games. Johnstone was no saint but he got the **** kicked out of him week in and week out. In an era when hatchet men specialised in delivering treatment that was off the radar by modern standards, Johnstone was more sinned against than sinner.

Given that he was playing for Rangers there is probably a reasonable assumption he got away with a lot also. His stamp on McMaster I think, was an absolute shocker.

BILLYHIBS
29-05-2018, 08:33 AM
Rioch himself admits in an interview link posted on here that he should never have started at the World Cup in 1978.The 1977 side were a year older Don Masson was a year older he ( Rioch) had had a poor season at Derby Ally Macleod made the cardinal error of being too loyal to the old guard and should maybe have gone with Souness Hartford and Gemmill.

G B Young
29-05-2018, 10:34 AM
I stopped watching Scotland years ago, but as a kid back then I recall thinking they were a sort of separate football entity, filled with exotic players I'd never seen play as most of them spent their entire careers down south. I'm pretty sure that the 78 World Cup squad was overwhelmingly made up of players from English clubs apart from Roughie and a handful of others. And they were playing for the top English clubs of the day eg Liverpool, Forest, Man U.

I do recall blinking back tears during the Peru game as I had fully believed all the hype about us winning the World Cup!

SonOfDavidFrancey
30-05-2018, 09:42 AM
The BBC highlights of this morning’s game start with a longs free kick for Peru. As the striker lines up I had immediate flashback to Cubillas....

heretoday
30-05-2018, 10:07 AM
The BBC highlights of this morning’s game start with a longs free kick for Peru. As the striker lines up I had immediate flashback to Cubillas....

Watching the highlights, I too was struck by the eerie similarity to events gone by - even down to the team strips. Weird.

G B Young
30-05-2018, 10:34 AM
Watching the highlights, I too was struck by the eerie similarity to events gone by - even down to the team strips. Weird.

This week's friendly prompted me to check out the highlights of the 1978 game on youtube. I'd actually forgotten Don Masson missed a penalty which would have put Scotland 2-1 ahead. The Peru free kick was extraordinary the way he hit it with his left foot and got some 'outswing' on it.

As somebody else has commented, Scotland wearing blue shorts for the first two games in Argentina did us no favours and it was only when we got back to the traditional white shorts that we turned in a good performance (albeit too late). IMHO strips of all one colour never look good, some worse than others. It's partly why I've never liked Liverpool and found Aberdeen hard to warm to. That all red look is unpleasant. However, nothing compares to an all maroon Hearts kit. Hideous is an understatement. Hibs in green shorts is a no-no for me although at least the white sleeves add a bit of balance and if they were to wear white socks it would be just about OK.

Kato
30-05-2018, 10:42 AM
This week's friendly prompted me to check out the highlights of the 1978 game on youtube. I'd actually forgotten Don Masson missed a penalty which would have put Scotland 2-1 ahead. The Peru free kick was extraordinary the way he hit it with his left foot and got some 'outswing' on it.

As somebody else has commented, Scotland wearing blue shorts for the first two games in Argentina did us no favours and it was only when we got back to the traditional white shorts that we turned in a good performance (albeit too late). IMHO strips of all one colour never look good, some worse than others. It's partly why I've never liked Liverpool and found Aberdeen hard to warm to. That all red look is unpleasant. However, nothing compares to an all maroon Hearts kit. Hideous is an understatement. Hibs in green shorts is a no-no for me although at least the white sleeves add a bit of balance and if they were to wear white socks it would be just about OK.

I reckon the colour of the Scotland teams shorts had nothing to do with our efforts in 1978.

Iggy Pope
30-05-2018, 01:23 PM
There was widespread condemnation when Scotland went and played Chile in the summer of 77 maybe - and played in the same stadium where Allende kept political prisoners in Santiago

I have a cutting somewhere telling the story of how the Chilean crowd went mental for John Blackley on this tour as he kept them entertained with his pre-match keepie- uppie routine.

Baader
30-05-2018, 01:26 PM
Such a shame we never make tournaments these days. To think there are kids aged 20 who've never seen Scotland play in a Euros or World Cup...

Kato
30-05-2018, 01:32 PM
I have a cutting somewhere telling the story of how the Chilean crowd went mental for John Blackley on this tour as he kept them entertained with his pre-match keepie- uppie routine.

Blackley's (stunning) keepie-uppie routine served as the background images for the opening credits of a German TV stations' programming during the 1974 WC.

Iggy Pope
30-05-2018, 01:36 PM
Blackley's (stunning) keepie-uppie routine served as the background images for the opening credits of a German TV stations' programming during the 1974 WC.

I had no idea on that one. I used to sneak about to watch the Hibs train at places like the JKC on the summer holidays and watching him juggle the ball was mesmerising. He was the coolest man on the planet.

HiBremian
30-05-2018, 01:52 PM
Wasn’t alive at the time so don’t want to derail your thread too much but it’s a period of South American history that fascinates me. I’ve read a lot about the military dictatorship that terrorized Argentina at the time, and visited the country since then. Some truly awful things were happening while that World Cup was going on.

id also love to hear from anyone that actually went there in ‘78

I was one of the nutters that travelled over. As another poster said, the flights were mega-expensive, but there was always Jim Laker doing "cheap" flights to New York, so I booked one of these and got the thumb out to head south. Took 6 weeks to get to Cordoba, with a string of crazy adventures along the way. I remember meeting up with Willie McIlvanney and five Glaswegians in Peru. He was writing a weekly feature about his group going overland to Argentina. We were on a bus to Lima when there was a general strike on, and we couldn't get through a particular village - the driver tried once and the bus got bricks and stones hurled through the windows (we were all on the floor). Eventually we got out to chat to the villagers, told them who were, and we set up a quick kickabout, Peru v Scotland, before the cops arrived. Ironically we won 3-1.

Met a lot of people in Cordoba affected by the junta, wives or husbands in jail or disappeared, and a family I stayed with who hid pictures of Peron and his wife under their bed. But we were in a strange position, the regime had "instructed" officials etc to be "welcoming", so we had posh restaurants giving us fans free meals. Once it was all over, there were about a dozen of us "left behind". I actually did a photo and article which I sent off to the Record about us, still got the cutting somewhere. Not sure how many eventually made it home, but I got back in September after hitching north with a fan from Perth, getting casual work in Chicago, then going on to his relatives in Canada where we played for the local team. Unforgettable adventure. The football was probably just a good excuse.

Eaststand
30-05-2018, 02:07 PM
I was one of the nutters that travelled over. As another poster said, the flights were mega-expensive, but there was always Jim Laker doing "cheap" flights to New York, so I booked one of these and got the thumb out to head south. Took 6 weeks to get to Cordoba, with a string of crazy adventures along the way. I remember meeting up with Willie McIlvanney and five Glaswegians in Peru. He was writing a weekly feature about his group going overland to Argentina. We were on a bus to Lima when there was a general strike on, and we couldn't get through a particular village - the driver tried once and the bus got bricks and stones hurled through the windows (we were all on the floor). Eventually we got out to chat to the villagers, told them who were, and we set up a quick kickabout, Peru v Scotland, before the cops arrived. Ironically we won 3-1.

Met a lot of people in Cordoba affected by the junta, wives or husbands in jail or disappeared, and a family I stayed with who hid pictures of Peron and his wife under their bed. But we were in a strange position, the regime had "instructed" officials etc to be "welcoming", so we had posh restaurants giving us fans free meals. Once it was all over, there were about a dozen of us "left behind". I actually did a photo and article which I sent off to the Record about us, still got the cutting somewhere. Not sure how many eventually made it home, but I got back in September after hitching north with a fan from Perth, getting casual work in Chicago, then going on to his relatives in Canada where we played for the local team. Unforgettable adventure. The football was probably just a good excuse.

Great read that bud, and although I didn't make it over to Argentina, for a lot of different reasons it was a very memorable tournament.

GGTTH

JimBHibees
30-05-2018, 02:11 PM
I was one of the nutters that travelled over. As another poster said, the flights were mega-expensive, but there was always Jim Laker doing "cheap" flights to New York, so I booked one of these and got the thumb out to head south. Took 6 weeks to get to Cordoba, with a string of crazy adventures along the way. I remember meeting up with Willie McIlvanney and five Glaswegians in Peru. He was writing a weekly feature about his group going overland to Argentina. We were on a bus to Lima when there was a general strike on, and we couldn't get through a particular village - the driver tried once and the bus got bricks and stones hurled through the windows (we were all on the floor). Eventually we got out to chat to the villagers, told them who were, and we set up a quick kickabout, Peru v Scotland, before the cops arrived. Ironically we won 3-1.

Met a lot of people in Cordoba affected by the junta, wives or husbands in jail or disappeared, and a family I stayed with who hid pictures of Peron and his wife under their bed. But we were in a strange position, the regime had "instructed" officials etc to be "welcoming", so we had posh restaurants giving us fans free meals. Once it was all over, there were about a dozen of us "left behind". I actually did a photo and article which I sent off to the Record about us, still got the cutting somewhere. Not sure how many eventually made it home, but I got back in September after hitching north with a fan from Perth, getting casual work in Chicago, then going on to his relatives in Canada where we played for the local team. Unforgettable adventure. The football was probably just a good excuse.

Brilliant strory that. Sounds amazing.

Kato
30-05-2018, 02:13 PM
I had no idea on that one. I used to sneak about to watch the Hibs train at places like the JKC on the summer holidays and watching him juggle the ball was mesmerising. He was the coolest man on the planet.

I too was a regular at kipping off school (Niddrie Mill Primary/Niddrie Marischal) in the morning and heading up to Hunter's Hall to watch the Hibs train - including one memorable morning when Joe Baker had first training session back with us up there. :aok:

The credits for the German show were shown on World of Sport a couple of times, with Blackley's routine being the attraction.

JimBHibees
30-05-2018, 02:16 PM
thanks, I didn’t know Scotland played there.

(ps - you mean where Pinochet kept political prisoners?)

Pinochet not Allende.

Pagan Hibernia
30-05-2018, 04:05 PM
I was one of the nutters that travelled over. As another poster said, the flights were mega-expensive, but there was always Jim Laker doing "cheap" flights to New York, so I booked one of these and got the thumb out to head south. Took 6 weeks to get to Cordoba, with a string of crazy adventures along the way. I remember meeting up with Willie McIlvanney and five Glaswegians in Peru. He was writing a weekly feature about his group going overland to Argentina. We were on a bus to Lima when there was a general strike on, and we couldn't get through a particular village - the driver tried once and the bus got bricks and stones hurled through the windows (we were all on the floor). Eventually we got out to chat to the villagers, told them who were, and we set up a quick kickabout, Peru v Scotland, before the cops arrived. Ironically we won 3-1.

Met a lot of people in Cordoba affected by the junta, wives or husbands in jail or disappeared, and a family I stayed with who hid pictures of Peron and his wife under their bed. But we were in a strange position, the regime had "instructed" officials etc to be "welcoming", so we had posh restaurants giving us fans free meals. Once it was all over, there were about a dozen of us "left behind". I actually did a photo and article which I sent off to the Record about us, still got the cutting somewhere. Not sure how many eventually made it home, but I got back in September after hitching north with a fan from Perth, getting casual work in Chicago, then going on to his relatives in Canada where we played for the local team. Unforgettable adventure. The football was probably just a good excuse.

i could read posts like this all day. Thanks

Purple & Green
30-05-2018, 07:28 PM
Roughie summed it all up quite well on his show the other night, talking about the chaos of the whole affair. The hotel the team stayed at was brutal, an empty dry swimming pool and no windows in their shared rooms. He was asked 'no windows?' he said nope, just two beds and a cupboard lol

Holland apparently moved into our hotel when we moved out. There's a an excellent book by Graham McColl IIRC - How Scotland lost the 78 World Cup - with significant contribution from John Hagart who was Ally's number 2. Well worth a read.

One Day Soon
31-05-2018, 07:49 AM
I was one of the nutters that travelled over. As another poster said, the flights were mega-expensive, but there was always Jim Laker doing "cheap" flights to New York, so I booked one of these and got the thumb out to head south. Took 6 weeks to get to Cordoba, with a string of crazy adventures along the way. I remember meeting up with Willie McIlvanney and five Glaswegians in Peru. He was writing a weekly feature about his group going overland to Argentina. We were on a bus to Lima when there was a general strike on, and we couldn't get through a particular village - the driver tried once and the bus got bricks and stones hurled through the windows (we were all on the floor). Eventually we got out to chat to the villagers, told them who were, and we set up a quick kickabout, Peru v Scotland, before the cops arrived. Ironically we won 3-1.

Met a lot of people in Cordoba affected by the junta, wives or husbands in jail or disappeared, and a family I stayed with who hid pictures of Peron and his wife under their bed. But we were in a strange position, the regime had "instructed" officials etc to be "welcoming", so we had posh restaurants giving us fans free meals. Once it was all over, there were about a dozen of us "left behind". I actually did a photo and article which I sent off to the Record about us, still got the cutting somewhere. Not sure how many eventually made it home, but I got back in September after hitching north with a fan from Perth, getting casual work in Chicago, then going on to his relatives in Canada where we played for the local team. Unforgettable adventure. The football was probably just a good excuse.


What a fantastic post. There's probably a decent book in there if you could be bothered to write it.

Even now I hate the memories of '78. I was 13 at the time and lived for football. We had a good team - or at least we had a collection of excellent players who should have been a very good team.

Teofilio Cubillas. Just his name brings back the feelings of dread and upset. And then us beating Holland - the best team in the world at the time - was just remarkable.

The memories that stick in my mind are:



that world cup had brilliant music associated with the tv coverage on the BBC I think
the images of games where the Argies would throw lots of torn up paper into the air to celebrate - it looked great
Peru utterly giving it away to Argentina in the most obvious of bought games
Later, Willie Henderson having syringes thrown at him as he ran out of the tunnel at Tynecastle in a game against Rangers
Mario Kempes and his South American version of a perm/mullet
Ally MacLeod slumped on the bench with his head in his hands looking like a complete chump
Pi5hed Scotland fans filmed in Argentina chanting "We want our money back..."
Terrible adverts for cars with Scotland players opening doors from the inside and sticking their heads out to grin
"We're on the march with Ally's army..." Go. ****. Yourself.
Alan Rough looking like he was encountering free kicks for literally the first time in his career
The blue shorts. Seriously, the blue ****ing shorts. I don't think I can recall us wearing them at any time in the run up either in qualifying or in friendlies so why? Why? FFS why? It's like when Italy wear white - so needless and just asking for trouble.
Losing it so much when Archie scored that goal, because of its artistry and because I thought we might actually do it, that I literally ran out of the house with excitement.
Having certain names indelibly etched into my memory: Cubillas of course, but also Rep, Neeskens, Van Hanegem, Rensenbrink, Krol, the van der Kerkhofs, Kempes, Ardilles, Jordan, Macari, Chumpitaz, Gentile, Cabrini, Causio, Passarella.
The sense of mind numbing utter desolation when we crashed out and then more of it in the days and weeks afterwards. It was like the whole nation had been on some acid fueled deluded football trip and things would never, ever be the same again. And of course, they never were

BILLYHIBS
31-05-2018, 07:56 AM
What a fantastic post. There's probably a decent book in there if you could be bothered to write it.

Even now I hate the memories of '78. I was 13 at the time and lived for football. We had a good team - or at least we had a collection of excellent players who should have been a very good team.

Teofilio Cubillas. Just his name brings back the feelings of dread and upset. And then us beating Holland - the best team in the world at the time - was just remarkable.

The memories that stick in my mind are:



that world cup had brilliant music associated with the tv coverage on the BBC I think
the images of games where the Argies would throw lots of torn up paper into the air to celebrate - it looked great
Peru utterly giving it away to Argentina in the most obvious of bought games
Later, Willie Henderson having syringes thrown at him as he ran out of the tunnel at Tynecastle in a game against Rangers
Mario Kempes and his South American version of a perm/mullet
Ally MacLeod slumped on the bench with his head in his hands looking like a complete chump
Pi5hed Scotland fans filmed in Argentina chanting "We want our money back..."
Terrible adverts for cars with Scotland players opening doors from the inside and sticking their heads out to grin
"We're on the march with Ally's army..." Go. ****. Yourself.
Alan Rough looking like he was encountering free kicks for literally the first time in his career
The blue shorts. Seriously, the blue ****ing shorts. I don't think I can recall us wearing them at any time in the run up either in qualifying or in friendlies so why? Why? FFS why? It's like when Italy wear white - so needless and just asking for trouble.
Losing it so much when Archie scored that goal, because of its artistry and because I thought we might actually do it, that I literally ran out of the house with excitement.
Having certain names indelibly etched into my memory: Cubillas of course, but also Rep, Neeskens, Van Hanegem, Rensenbrink, Krol, the van der Kerkhofs, Kempes, Ardilles, Jordan, Macari, Chumpitaz, Gentile, Cabrini, Causio, Passarella.
The sense of mind numbing utter desolation when we crashed out and then more of it in the days and weeks afterwards. It was like the whole nation had been on some acid fueled deluded football trip and things would never, ever be the same again. And of course, they never were


Syringes thrown at Willie Johnston

One Day Soon
31-05-2018, 08:00 AM
Syringes thrown at Willie Johnston

Oops sorry yes - Johnston. Head's all over the place with a ****** summer cold.

LustForLeith
04-06-2018, 08:48 PM
Got the Argentina 78 book delivered today. Smells like it’s been in the post since 78.

Looking forward to reading it!!!

HibbyAndy
04-06-2018, 08:59 PM
Got the Argentina 78 book delivered today. Smells like it’s been in the post since 78.

Looking forward to reading it!!!

:tee hee::tee hee:


That's ma sense of humour :greengrin

LustForLeith
06-06-2018, 09:01 PM
That documentary on BBC just now was great

JimBHibees
06-06-2018, 09:19 PM
Superb couldn't help but feel sorry for Ally and his family.

hibee_girl
06-06-2018, 09:23 PM
That documentary on BBC just now was great

:agree:

Loved the caption ‘Scotland still haven’t won a World Cup... yet’

Always hope :greengrin

Lago
06-06-2018, 09:32 PM
:top marks
Superb couldn't help but feel sorry for Ally and his family.

Pretty Boy
06-06-2018, 09:36 PM
Superb couldn't help but feel sorry for Ally and his family.

That was my thoughts.

I don't really know anything about AM but whenever I see footage of him or hear his interviews he just seemed an enthusiastic guy who got a bit carried away (a slight understatement!)

There's a place for being realistic but for a few weeks he had a lot of people really believing in a dream. I often wonder if there was a real feeling we could win it or if it was just a bit of mass hysteria amongst a small number?

The Harp Awakes
06-06-2018, 09:38 PM
That documentary on BBC just now was great

It certainly was a brilliant documentary which brought back so many memories even though I was only 12 at the time.

One thing is for sure, give me a positive Manager with high expectations like Ally McLeod any time over the drab Harry Potter type. Ally had the nation bouncing and it was a great time to be a Scotland fan. It all went pear shaped of course but without belief and inspiration you have nothing.

tamig
06-06-2018, 09:47 PM
That was my thoughts.

I don't really know anything about AM but whenever I see footage of him or hear his interviews he just seemed an enthusiastic guy who got a bit carried away (a slight understatement!)

There's a place for being realistic but for a few weeks he had a lot of people really believing in a dream. I often wonder if there was a real feeling we could win it or if it was just a bit of mass hysteria amongst a small number?

The thing is, that squad was superb. They were no mugs and we could have gone far in that tournament with just a couple of changes in midfield. People look at the Peru and Iran games in isolation and assume that we were mugs to fall for Ally’s claims. We definitely could have and should have gone much further in 78.

hfc rd
06-06-2018, 10:01 PM
Really enjoyed the Argentina 78 documentary tonight. Great watch

Halmyre Hibee
06-06-2018, 10:15 PM
Ah memories.

The farewell party at Hampden was on 25th May 1978 and 5 days later I was lucky enough to play at Hampden for my school Liberton in the Scottish Secondary Shield Final.

Lost 2-0 and I got injured just before half time with damaged ankle ligaments.

Great period in my life and that was some Scotland team. Unfortunately, they didn't do their homework on their first 2 opponents but what a performance against Holland.

hibsbollah
07-06-2018, 12:00 AM
I actually didn't think they still made TV programmes like this anymore. An historical documentary that you can almost reach out and touch, it's so authentic. I know because I remember the whole Argentina nonsense as a seven year old like it was yesterday :greengrin Loved every minute of it.

Smartie
07-06-2018, 06:01 AM
I actually didn't think they still made TV programmes like this anymore. An historical documentary that you can almost reach out and touch, it's so authentic. I know because I remember the whole Argentina nonsense as a seven year old like it was yesterday :greengrin Loved every minute of it.

I watched the Kenny Dalglish programme on I-player the night before and it was also superb.

The BBC are still very good at this kind of thing.

JimBHibees
07-06-2018, 06:12 AM
That was my thoughts.

I don't really know anything about AM but whenever I see footage of him or hear his interviews he just seemed an enthusiastic guy who got a bit carried away (a slight understatement!)

There's a place for being realistic but for a few weeks he had a lot of people really believing in a dream. I often wonder if there was a real feeling we could win it or if it was just a bit of mass hysteria amongst a small number?

Having lived through it there was definitely a real feeling we could win. He started the ball rolling but others were more than happy to join in. He was let down by Sfa as per I think, there was almost the narrative the send off was his idea but certainly seemed like it wasn't when Roughie said McLeod was embarrassed by it. The hotel looked horrific with no training facilities and also looked like no control of the press. He was basically hung out to dry by the suits imo when it went wrong.

JimBHibees
07-06-2018, 06:14 AM
The thing is, that squad was superb. They were no mugs and we could have gone far in that tournament with just a couple of changes in midfield. People look at the Peru and Iran games in isolation and assume that we were mugs to fall for Ally’s claims. We definitely could have and should have gone much further in 78.

Good squad but some of the selections were bizarre taking Harper in place of Andy Gray being one.

BILLYHIBS
07-06-2018, 06:20 AM
:tee hee::tee hee:


That's ma sense of humour :greengrin
Got mine on eBay £2.70 including delivery hardback mint condition excellent read.

Ally Macleod even played for the cabbage before the real Ally Macleod.

:not worth

Eaststand
07-06-2018, 06:25 AM
I actually didn't think they still made TV programmes like this anymore. An historical documentary that you can almost reach out and touch, it's so authentic. I know because I remember the whole Argentina nonsense as a seven year old like it was yesterday :greengrin Loved every minute of it.

This.
I was 20 in 1978, and although it sounds daft, nearly everybody I knew expected us to win it, or at least get to the Final !
A great build up, and the Argentina World Cup was an exciting rollercoaster ride in time in our football history.

GGTTH

BILLYHIBS
07-06-2018, 06:34 AM
This.
I was 20 in 1978, and although it sounds daft, nearly everybody I knew expected us to win it, or at least get to the Final !
A great build up, and the Argentina World Cup was an exciting rollercoaster ride in time in our football history.

GGTTH
I would agree with this. I also remember feeling great shame because Willie Johnston an excellent player in my young eyes got sent home for being a junky.

hibsbollah
07-06-2018, 07:21 AM
I watched the Kenny Dalglish programme on I-player the night before and it was also superb.

The BBC are still very good at this kind of thing.

Im watching it now, very good.

JeMeSouviens
07-06-2018, 07:24 AM
That was my thoughts.

I don't really know anything about AM but whenever I see footage of him or hear his interviews he just seemed an enthusiastic guy who got a bit carried away (a slight understatement!)

There's a place for being realistic but for a few weeks he had a lot of people really believing in a dream. I often wonder if there was a real feeling we could win it or if it was just a bit of mass hysteria amongst a small number?

There definitely was a feeling we could win. We knocked out the current European champs, Czechoslovakia (Panenka et al), in qualifying and we won the home internationals in 76 and 77 which was still a big deal then.

MacLeod was a bit of a double glazing salesman but it was at least a bit justified.

BILLYHIBS
07-06-2018, 07:26 AM
Im watching it now, very good.
Would agree with this excellent watch from Kennys point of view.Maybes Aye maybes naw!

:wink:

No a bad player anaw!

heretoday
07-06-2018, 12:59 PM
God I'm fed up with endless reruns of Argentina '78. Can't we focus on Scotland's successes for a change?



OK. Cue the Argentina tape again..............................

Spike Mandela
07-06-2018, 01:48 PM
Felt quite emotional watching that, not sure why. 😩

Maybe grieving my lost youth or more innocent times. Whatever, it was a great watch.🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Gordy M
07-06-2018, 01:55 PM
Interesting to hear Bill Shankly say that if the Scotland team played in the then English Div 1....that it would be over by xmas as they were so good.

Onion
07-06-2018, 02:15 PM
Interesting to hear Bill Shankly say that if the Scotland team played in the then English Div 1....that it would be over by xmas as they were so good.

Crazy thing is Scotland had world class players and on their day could beat the very best (as shown v Holland). Winning the thing was always a bit tongue in cheek but Ally couldn't get the genie back in the bottle and in the end he proved to be a crap manager. His comment about not knowing anything about Peru and Iran is shocking to this day.

Convinced had that squad been managed by a someone like Stein, the semis or final were up for grabs. But there you go ...

IWasThere2016
07-06-2018, 07:12 PM
My cousin was on repeatedly. He's the one who took the bus through 6 countries to get there. Quit his job to go. Daft Jambo.

Baader
07-06-2018, 11:36 PM
Really enjoyed the doc. I'm too young to remember Argentina '78 but I grew up hearing stories about it. One of my Dad's pals went and brought me back a programme and a ticket stub. I am firmly of the belief that World Cup is engrained in the Scottish psyche. A pivotal event and the film picked up on that.

The World Cup was more magical when you only seen the yellow and green of Brazil every four years. It was something special getting to see these players you only heard about from South America.

Scotland did have a very strong squad in 78 and should have gone further. Another hard luck story.

The 74 squad was very strong also. I did not know that we became the first team to exit a World Cup not having lost a game. Drew with Brazil and Yugoslavia but didn't beat Zaire by enough goals. Only country undefeated in that tournament! Typical Scotland but just featuring in one now would seem an achievement.

IWasThere2016
08-06-2018, 01:13 AM
If we'd Stein or Shanks in charge it would have been different. Souness should have started all 3 games also.

weecounty hibby
08-06-2018, 06:25 AM
Really enjoyed the doc. I'm too young to remember Argentina '78 but I grew up hearing stories about it. One of my Dad's pals went and brought me back a programme and a ticket stub. I am firmly of the belief that World Cup is engrained in the Scottish psyche. A pivotal event and the film picked up on that.

The World Cup was more magical when you only seen the yellow and green of Brazil every four years. It was something special getting to see these players you only heard about from South America.

Scotland did have a very strong squad in 78 and should have gone further. Another hard luck story.

The 74 squad was very strong also. I did not know that we became the first team to exit a World Cup not having lost a game. Drew with Brazil and Yugoslavia but didn't beat Zaire by enough goals. Only country undefeated in that tournament! Typical Scotland but just featuring in one now would seem an achievement.
In my lifetime the world cup teams of 74, 78, 82 and 86 were all very good teams and should have done better than they did in those competitions. 90 was decent and 98 was not too great. 90 was my first world cup I went to and although an amazing experience I still feel that we should have got out of that group too. I'm lucky to have been to two finals but as you say just getting there would be great now